Port Lympne Wild Animal Park giving up Asian breeding program ? » Port Lympne Zoo

Port Lympne Wild Animal Park giving up Asian breeding program ?
03-07-2007

has anyone got any information about Port Lympne Wild Animal Park giving up it's Asian breeding program? I can only find superficial snippets. 3 African cows (i dont know which) were moved from Howletts and the bull Kruger, from Knowsley was moved there to breed with them. Any ideas on how this would affect the Howletts herd?

03-07-2007

Port Lympne decided to giv up keeping Asian elephants last spring, when the two younger females and the female calf were sent to Antwerp, and the older cows and the bull Luka to somewhere in Spain. The decision was made because they had repeated failures with breeding, with several stillbirths and rejected calves. The final straw was the loss of the two year old male calf 'Sittang' to the elephant virus. He was their first successful calf to be reared after about eight failed births.

Three African cows from Howletts were relocated there and joined, as you say, by the unrelated bull 'Kruger', from Knowlsey SP. Space at Howletts is limited so spitting the African herd in this way is probably beneficial for them anyway.

My only critisism of this is that they didn't take the chance to upgrade the Port Lympne accomodation, particularly the barns, before moving in new elephants.

24-03-2008

Abit late!
But the 3 females from Howletts are: Shara, Lara and her daughter Issa.


Any news on breeding with the new herd then?

24-03-2008

As awful as it was, the loss of Sittang has at least meant that all the original Port Lympne cows, plus a few that joined later on, are together again in the much warmer home at Terra Natura. The original bulls, Assam died at Port Lympne a few years ago during an operation on his tooth, and Bindu has
been moved to Cologne zoo, which at least has spacious indoor facilities.
The surviving rotterdam group were the ones Port Lympne sent to Antwerp.

If you want to keep track of captive asian elephants and see the port lympne animals in their new facilities, go to www.asianelephant.net

24-03-2008

Both me and paradoxurus have uploaded photos of the elephants at Terra Natura, so I assume the port lympne animals are on there.

Just realised there is also a Terra Natura gallery on this site...

27-03-2008

Any new developments for 2008 expected at either Port Lympne or Howletts in Bekesbourne? New exhibits, new species?

27-03-2008

I'm planning to visit as/when the weather improves, so will find out. I don't know of any major constructions happening this year though.

28-03-2008

Grant, when you do visit could you ask them if they intend to join the UK breeding program on Indian rhinos since now there are three UK zoos holding them and also do they plan to "bring in" some new African elephants to add to the Port Lypmne herd

28-03-2008

... I heard a rumour a few years back that they wanted to get Javan Rhinos! They always seem to want to get species other zoos haven't got. But I guess realistically Indian rhino is more likely....

28-03-2008

Is this just a zoobeat rumour or are Port Lymne seriously moving onto Indian rhino next?

28-03-2008

The keepers at Port Lypmne told me in 1987 they did want to get Javan rhinos if they could

28-03-2008

I would like to know if they do intead to keep the species, it would be interesting if there were four UK zoos working with this rhino

28-03-2008

They like so many zoos around the world have absolutely no chance of ever getting Javan rhino, it simply would not happen!
If they are to go into Indian rhino the former Sumatran rhino would be an ideal house with its forested paddocks.
Speaking of Sumatrans, who would have thought 20 years ago we would see them on these shores, or come to mention outside of Indonesia, so i take it back about the Javans (not!)

28-03-2008

If any zoo gets Javans, it should be San Diego WAP, as they have done the best breeding with the indian rhinos... I'm not to sure that the climate is right for them though...

28-03-2008

if there was any chance of Javans coming into captivity, i think Singapore would be the ideal holding zoo for them, with climate and finance playing major roles.